Reloadable shotgun shell device



Sept. 3, 1968 R. J. HouDl-:K

y RELOADABLE SHOTGUN SHELL DEVICE Filed May 22, 1967 Ronuid J. Houdek Flags.

ATTORNEY United States Patent Office 3,399,622 Patented Sept. 3, 1968 3,399,622 RELOADABLE SHOTGUN SHELL DEVICE Ronald J. Houdek, Lakota, N. Dak. 58344- Filed May 22, 1967, Ser. No. 640,013

4 Claims.V (Cl. 102-42) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A reloading tube for a shotgun shell. The tube contains the conventional elements of a shotgun shell, i.e. shot, wadding and a powder charge. Cap closures are secured to each end of the tube. For reloading, the complete tube is inserted in an empty cartridge casing.

This invention relates to shotgun shell equipment, more particularly, the invention relates to shotgun shell equipment and to the structure and method of reloading of shotgun shells.

It is an object of this invention to provide a novel inexpensive reloading unit for shotgun shells.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a novel inexpensive reloading unit for shotgun shell casings which can rapidly reload a shotgun shell casing with the pellets, wad and powder charge.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a novel shotgun shell having a novel casing and interior construction for rapid assembly.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the description proceeds and when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective View of the novel shotgun shell invention with portions broken away revealing the interior reloading unit.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective View of the interior reloading unit of the invention.

FIGURE 3 is a cross-section of one modification of a shotgun shell housing the reloading unit of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is a cross-section of a second modification of a shotgun shell housing the reloading unit of FIG- URE 2.

FIGURE 5 is a cross-section of the reloading unit of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged view of one modification of the reloading unit closure which is adjacent the shotgun shell primer.

FIGURE 7 is an end view of the reloading unit closure of FIGURE 6.

FIGURE 8 is an enlarged view of a second embodiment of the reloading unit closure which is adjacent the shotgun shell primer.

FIGURE 9 is an end view of the reloading unit closure of FIGURE 8.

Briefiy stated, the invention comprises a shotgun shell having a casing with a primer at one end, a reloading unit comprising an elongated -plastic sleeve with a center plastic plug formed integrally with the sleeve and acting as wadding, a powder charge filling one end of the sleeve adjacent the primer, and a first plastic cover covering the one end of the sleeve to retain the powder therein; shotgun pellets filling the other end of the lsleeve and a plastic cover covering the other end of the sleeve, said reloading unit being telescoped into said casing and rfrictionally retained therein with said first cover adjacent said primer whereby when said casing with the reloading unit installed, is placed in the ring chamber and the primer is struck the ignition of the powder in the primer will burn through the first cover and ignite the powder and fire the Shell.

Referring more particularly to the drawings in FIG- URES 1 and 3, the shotgun shell invention 19 is shown with the reloading unit 20 operatively installed in a shotgun shell casing 21. The casing has a conventional brass end piece 22. The outer end 23 of the casing may have a conventional folded outer edge 23 as shown in FIG- URES 1 and 3, lor may have an open end 23 as illustrated in the modified form of casing shown in FIG- URE 2.

The reloading unit 20 is installed in the casing 21 as illustrated in FIGURES 1, 3, and 4. The reloading unit 23 has a cylindrical plastic sleeve 24 with a center plastic plug 25 formed integrally with the sleeve 23 and acting as wadding. The inner end 26 of the sleeve 24 is filled with shotgun powder 28 and the outer end 27 is filled with shotgun pellets 29.

The inner end 0f the plastic sleeve 24 has a thin plastic end cover 30 which covers the end of the sleeve and retains the gun powder 28 therein under pressure. The outer end of the plastic sleeve 27 is covered with a thin plastic end cover 31 which retains the shotgun pellets 29 therein. The covers 30 and 31 may `be glued to the plastic sleeve 27. A tapered plastic coating 32 is placed annularly along the outer edge of the cover 31 to facilitate introduction of the unit 23 into the casing 21.

The covers 30 and 31 have disc portions 37 and 38 and annular flange portions 39 and 4i) which fianges are formed integrally with the disc portions 37 and 38 respectively.

The primer 33 is mounted in the hole 22' of the brass end piece 22 of the casing 21. The primer 33 is of a conventional type having an outer end 33 which struck by a firing pin and a hole in its inner end 33" through which its charge explodes or ignites. The disc portion 37 of the cover 30, when the reloading unit is operatively installed, as illustrated in FIGURES 3, 4, 6 and 8, will abut the primer end 33" and its hole and be flush with the plastic disc portion 40 surrounding the primer so that there will be no significant amount of air space between primer end and the cover 30. The primer 33 when struck will cause its charge to ignite. Its ignited charge will readily and quickly and practically instantaneously burn through the abutting disc portion 37 of the plastic cover 30 and ignite the powder 28 therein without an appreciable delay.

The end cap or cover 30 may be made of any thin material which the primer when ignited will burn through. However, it is preferable that the cover 30, particularly the end disc portion 37, be formed of any thin flammable material such as cellophane, 4cellulose acetate or nitrate of approximately one or two mils thickness or less, or lany material of suicient strength to hold the gun powder 28 in position in the sleeve 24 and sufiiciently flammable to burn itself up quickly.

The outer cover 31 may also be made of .any thin plastic material such as conventional plastic adhesive tape and it has been found that when the primer 33 is struck and ignited thereby igniting the powder 28, and the powder exploded the pellets will readily break through the cover 31 and form 4a satisfactory pattern and have satisfactory speed.

The louter diameter of the end covers 30 and 31 along the area indicated by numeral 34 is slightly larger than the inner diameter 35 of the casing 21 so that when the reloading unit 19 is pressed into the casing 21 it will be frictionally retained therein in position.

Operation The shotgun shell invention 20 is loaded by taking a plastic casing 21 with a conventional brass end piece 22 and inserting the primer 33. Thereafter the reloading unit is inserted into the end 23 and if a conventional casing 21 3 is employed, then a paper end disc 36 will be placed in front of the cover 31 land the ends will be crimped as shown by numeral 23.

If the modified form of shell casing 21 is employed, the end 23 will be left open after the reloading unit 20 has been inserted therein.

The shell invention 20 is now ready to be tired. The shell invention 20 will be placed in the tiring chamber, and upon triggering the gun, the firing pin will strike the end 33 of the primer which will ignite the charge in the primer and its explosion or ring will pass out the hole at the end 33" and burn through the cover 30 and ignite the powder charge 28. The ignition of the powder charge will force the reloading unit out of the open end 23 of the casing and out of the barrel of the gun. The reloading unit being relatively light will travel only a short distance and fall off to the ground, while the pellets being relatively heavy will break through the cover 31 and travel on their normal course and form their normal pattern.

The casing 21 may be reused time and time again by simply replacing the primer and inserting a new reloading unit.

Since the reloading unit 20 is frictionally fit into the casing 21, a crimped out end would not have to be crimped over as the cover 31 will hold the pellets in place.

In the modified form of powder cap or cover 30', shown in FIGURES 8 and 9, the cover is perforated with small holes 36, to facilitate the ignition from the primer reaching the powder charge 28. The perforations 36 will be smaller than the size of powder grains employed so that the powder will not fall out.

The reloading unit sleeve 24, and plug portion 2S, may be made of inexpensive plastic. The annular covers 30 and 31 have end disc portions 37 and 38 and annul-ar anges 39 and 40 formed integrally with their respective disc portions 37 and 38. The plug 25 serves the same purpose as -wadding and it may be made integrally with the plastic sleeve 25 or may be separate and of different material,

Thus, it will be seen that a novel rapid reloadable shell invention has been provided.

It will be obvious from the foregoing that various 4 changes and departures in the invention may be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof and accordingly it is not intended that the invention be limited to that specifically described in the specification or illustrated in the drawing but only as set forth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A shotgun shell having a casing with an end piece over one end of the casing, a primer mounted to said end piece, la reloading unit frictionally retained in said casing, said reloading unit comprising a sleeve, a plug mounted centrally in said sleeve, shotgun powder in one end of said sleeve, a first thin cover covering said one end of said sleeve and holding said powder in said sleeve under compression, said first thin cover being adjacent said primer, pellets in the other end of said sleeve and a thin second cover covering said pellets, said shell adapted to be placed in the tiring chamber of a gun and upon the striking of the primer the powder charge will explode, burn through the rst thin cover, and ignite the gun powder in the one end of the sleeve and fire the pellets out of the sleeve casing and gun, and lire the reloading unit out of the casing and gun.

2. A shotgun shell invention according to claim 1 wherein said casing has a crimped end opposite said primer for ring.

3. A shotgun shell invention laccording to claim 1 wherein said casing has an open end opposite primer.

4. A shotgun shell invention according to claim 1 wherein said first thin cover has small perforations in the area of said primer.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 579,853 3/1'897 Williams 102-42 3,139,827 7/1964 Orozco 102-38 FOREIGN PATENTS 24,529 1894` Great Britain.

747,670 12/1966 Canada- ROBERT F. STAHL, Primary Examiner. 

